§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will(a) place in the Library a copy of the recent study carried out for his Department comparing the earnings of barristers with other public sector professions and (b) make a statement on the conclusions of the study. [134350]
§ Mr. LockCopies of the recent study into the comparison of barristers' income from public funds with other comparable professions in the public sector have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
The study indicated that barristers were paid significantly more than members of other professions doing skilled and stressful jobs who were also paid from public funds. The conclusions of the research are being considered, together with other evidence available, in determining the level of rates payable to barristers for both publicly funded family and criminal work. The Lord Chancellor and I are currently considering the responses to proposals which have been made on such fees and will announce our conclusions shortly.